Whatcom court orders Lynden restaurant to stop in-person service
Rose DeGroot, the owner of Fairway Cafe in Lynden, has been ordered by a Whatcom County judge to comply with state rules that halted in-person dining, according to court documents.
Her daughter says her mother was simply trying to keep her staff working but has complied with the order, Kris Keene told The Bellingham Herald in an interview
Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Robert Olson signed a temporary restraining order on Wednesday, Dec. 2, that compels DeGroot to stop serving meals to customers in the dining room.
DeGroot was cited by the state Department of Labor & Industries for ignoring Gov. Jay Inslee’s order limiting bars and restaurants to take-out service as COVID-19 infections are spreading exponentially across the state.
L&I issued an Order and Notice of Immediate Restraint on Nov. 24 for violating the governor’s Safe Start program, and Olson’s order tells her to comply and to appear in court.
In addition, the Summit Trampoline Park of Bellingham was fined $9,639 for a Safe Start violation, but it has appealed, L&I spokesman Tim Church said.
Keene, DeGroot’s daughter, told The Herald that she was authorized to speak for the family that has run the family-style diner on Front Street since the early 1960s.
She said the restaurant switched to take-out service only on Thursday, Dec. 3, complying with the court order.
“This was not about politics, nor was it about profit,” Keene said. “It was simply an effort on our behalf to keep our staff employed.”
The Fairway Cafe is listed by the U.S. Small Business Administration as receiving $75,385 from Paycheck Protection Program funds on April 27.
Keene said the restaurant’s 16 to 17 workers have struggled since pandemic closures started in March, and that their unemployment and other benefits aren’t enough for them to make ends meet.
Several workers are single parents, she said.
And the entire staff voted to keep serving meals inside, she said.
“They wanted us to stay open and fight to give them a chance to keep food on the table,” Keene said. “They just want to earn a living.”
L&I’s Church said the state Emergency Operations Center, which is coordinating pandemic response, received 135 complaints about the Fairway Cafe in November, more than any other single business.
“The number of complaints has been astounding,” Church told The Herald.
“This business is putting the health of their employees and the health of their customers at risk. There are some serious ramifications that this location could face,” Church said.
In Wednesday’s court order, L&I said that DeGroot and the restaurant are “engaged in the business activity of indoor dine-in service, failing to require customers and employees to wear masks, and not adhering to social distancing requirements in the workplace.”
It was presented in court by Brian Dew, assistant attorney general.
DeGroot must answer the charges on Dec. 22.
Violation of the order is a gross misdemeanor, punishable by six months in jail and/or a $10,000 fine.
Keene, however, said employees are wearing masks or face shields to protect each other and customers.
“I can see pictures of people flying on an airplane and that seems OK,” Keene said. “But going out to dinner with your family isn’t?”
